On Sunday, a pack of killer whales attacked a 50-foot yacht carrying two individuals off Moroccan waters. The fortunate pair, sailing on the “Alboran Cognac,” were rescued, reported the Washington Post on Tuesday.
The incident occurred at 9:00 A.M. near the Strait of Gibraltar. The two people on the yacht felt the impact on the hull.
The killer whales damaged the vessel’s rudder, resulting in water infiltration. After reporting the attack, the duo was told to don life jackets and turn on their GPS locators in preparation for evacuation.
Spanish and Moroccan rescue services were notified and began their search efforts. According to a news statement from the Spanish Maritime Safety and Rescue Agency (SASEMAR), an oil tanker near the yacht rescued the two persons 14 miles off Cape Spartel in northern Morocco.
Alboran Charter, located in Spain, verified ownership of the sunken yacht and identified the individuals as clients. The corporation refuses to comment further about what transpired or who the clients were.
It is not new for Iberian orcas to sink a ship. Over the last four years, at least 15 orcas have engaged with hundreds of boats cruising in the waters near Portugal, Spain, and Morocco, drowning a few in apparent organized ambushes. Some ships exhibit tooth marks, while others appear to have been hit by an orca’s head or body.
Since 2020, there have been an average of 168 contacts each year, according to Grupo de Trabajo Orca Atlántica (GTOA), a research group investigating the region’s killer whales. GTOA has recorded 26 encounters so far this year, down from 61 during the same time period in 2023.
It is unclear as to why the orcas have recently bumped, bitten, and sunk boats. Some biologists claim they are merely engaging in frivolity, manifesting their curiosity, or pursuing vessels due to a loss of prey. Some argue that the activities might be beneficial to the whales.
Interestingly, some marine biologists contend that the episodes should not be referred to as “attacks” at all, because the whales’ motivations are unknown. They are concerned that this designation would elicit negative reactions from boaters–who may consider them to be threat to their own activities–which in turn would malign the intentions of this critically endangered species.
SASEMAR stated that the chance of encounters is highest between May and August, and recommended that vessels avoid the area between the Strait of Gibraltar and the Gulf of Cádiz to the west. It further stated that if a boat encounters orcas, it should continue heading toward the coast and toward shallower seas. People should not approach the boat’s side and should not take any actions which might harm or kill the whales.